page_title: Archmere Academy
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Archmere Academy / History
caption_attribution_description: English: RASKOB, JOHN J. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. No known restrictions on publication.
context_page_description: Archmere Academy is a private Roman Catholic college preparatory school located in Claymont, Delaware, United States. It enrolls approximately 500 students. The academy is co-educational and is run independently within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wilmington.
context_section_description: Archmere Academy was founded in 1932 by the Norbertine religious order, initially as an all-boys school. It began on the former estate of U.S. industrialist John J. Raskob, who lived there with his wife Helena and their 12 children until 1931. Raskob was the campaign manager for New York Governor Al Smith during his presidential campaign in 1928 and the home was used for many meetings, including those of the Democratic National Committee.
  The estate was purchased by Bernard Pennings in 1932. He was the Abbot of the Norbertine Order and is attributed as the founder of St. Norbert College, a private Catholic liberal arts college located in De Pere, Wisconsin. The estate was purchased for $300,000 in the spring of 1932 and officially dedicated in the fall of 1932. The first year of operation, Archmere Academy had an enrollment of 22 students, 16 freshmen and 6 sophomores. In 1933 and 1934, enrollment grew to 50 students and 72 students respectively.
  Archmere Academy began slowly expanding during the mid to late 1930s due to enrollment increases. Minor expansions were made to accommodate boarding students. In 1939 it built its first gymnasium and by 1940 it had converted the manor on the property into a science center. The school made a transition in the mid-1940s by where it became strictly a four-year college preparatory institution. It phased out both 7th and 8th grades during the 1946-47 and 1947-48 school years. It continued as a day school and boarding school for boys while its enrollment continued to increase.
  In 1957, Archmere Academy celebrated its 25th anniversary with the groundbreaking for St. Norbert Hall, the school's main academic building, which was completed in 1959. Going into the 1960s, it continued to expand to accommodate the increase in enrollment, which had reached 394 students by the end of that decade. The Justin E. Diny Science Center was opened in 1973 with classrooms for physics, chemistry, biology, and environmental science. The old science center was turned into a center for the arts which held classes for the school's chorus, band, theater, and studio arts program.
  The 1970s brought about two major changes for Archmere Academy. It moved away from being a boarding school and became a day school exclusively. In 1975 it also announced the decision to become a co-ed institution, enrolling 50 women into the school. It was near the end of the 1970s that the academy established a Board of Trustees, the first meeting of which took place in 1980. The Board has been credited with expanding the curriculum and extracurricular activities at the academy as well as further expanding to accommodate the new programs. One expansion included a renovation of St. Norbert Hall which included an addition to the current building. Additional expansion in the early 1980s included a new auditorium that seated 750 people, as well as a new library constructed on campus.
  In April 2001, an internal dispute among the Norbertines relating to the establishment of Claymont Priory separate from Daylesford Abbey spilled over into the administration of Archmere Academy.  Interventions from alumni calmed the turmoil and resulted in the Academy taking control of the former Raskob residence, known as "the Patio." 2003 marked the beginning of the academy's "Building on Mission & Heritage" campaign that included goals to complete the Justin E. Diny Science Center expansion, the construction of a Student Life Center, and renovations to the athletic field.
  The school broke tradition with the implementation of a non-Norbertine headmaster when Dr. Michael Marinelli, a 1976 graduate of Archmere Academy, took over at the beginning of 2010.
  Towards the end of the 2015-16 academic school year, Archmere began massive renovations on Saint Norbert's Hall. This reconstruction made changes to the library and every room in the building.
caption: John J. Raskob, owner of the estate where Archmere Academy now sits
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